Tiella di Patate, Pomodori e Cipolle & Foquazza de Cipodda

From Cosa Bolle in Pentola, the Newsletter:
Also got a note from Jane, who writes:
"I'm a bit frustrated....My great Aunt who is now deceased made an onion pie around the holidays and I was too young to ask the important questions.
"I recall only the following: Pie crust top AND bottom, onions, red sauce and black olives. There must be more in it and I have no idea how to do it. I'm in my late 40's and have been searching for years. Any suggestions? I would love to make it for Easter. My mom is an invalid and I know she would get a charge out of it.
"According to my mother, Aunt Marietta came from BARI. I hope this helps."

It didn't help as much as I would have liked. The closest Luigi Sada comes to this in his La Cucina Pugliese is a Tiella di Patate, Pomodori e Cipolle -- a baked dish with potatoes, onions and tomatoes.

To serve 4 you'll need:

• 6 ounces (150 g) potatoes
• 6 ounces (150 g) tomatoes
• 6 ounces (150 g) Onions
• Bread crumbs
• Olive oil
• Garlic
• Salt

Begin by peeling the potatoes and cut them into disks as thick as your finger.

Peel and slice the onions, and slice the tomatoes into thick slices, discarding the seeds.

Oil a dish proportionate to the volume of ingredients, and begin by putting down a layer of potatoes. Sprinkle with minced garlic, oregano, and salt. Another layer, onion this time, and more herbs, this time with tomato. Then a final layer with what remains, dust all with bread crumbs, sprinkle it with olive oil, and bake it in the oven for 45 minutes. Mr. Sada doesn't say at what temperature, but I'd go with about 380 F (190 C).

Though likely good, this isn't very close. However, I did find a Foquazza de Cipodda (Torta di Patate e Cipolla, Potato and Onion Torte) in Ottavio Cavalcanti's Libro d'Oro della Cucina e Dei Vini della Calabria e Della Basilicata. It's from Basilicata, which borders Puglia, and has a filling similar to Aunt Marietta's pie:

• 2 1/4 pounds (1 k) potatoes
• 12 ounces (300 g) button onions, peeled
• 8 ounces (200 g) ripe tomatoes, sliced, discarding the seeds
• 2 ounces (50 g) salted capers, rinsed well
• 4 ounces (100 g) pitted black olives
• 6 salted anchovies (the kind one buys from a tin in a delicatessen, or 9-10 anchovy filets)
• Milk
• Hot water or meat broth
• Lard
• Olive oil
• Salt

Begin by peeling the potatoes, then chop them and put them in a pot with enough milk to cover and cook them, turning the mixture with a wooden spoon, until you obtain thick mashed potatoes. Use 2/3 of the mashed potatoes to line a lightly greased (with lard, the recipe says, though you can also use oil) oven-proof dish. Put down a layer of onions, followed by one of sliced tomatoes, then one of olives and capers.

Next, rinse, bone and break up the anchovy filets, and sauté them for a few minutes in olive oil. Sprinkle the oil and anchovy mixture over everything else, and brush the edge of the mashed potato "crust" with water. Spread the remaining mashed potatoes over all to form a lid and bake the pie in a moderate oven (370 F, 185 C) until it is pleasingly browned.

A printer-friendly version of this recipe.

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